The Portland daily press., 1887-10-03
RIunders of Famous Artists.

new YORK Mail and EXpressl
The French artist whose picture in the last
Salon showed the eccentrieity of presenting
cavalier of the time of Louis XIV, armed
with modern revolver, was not alone in his
anachronism. Some Of the early painters
were amusngly careless about such matters.
TiDtoretto, in picture Of the Children of
Israel gathering mama, represents them as
having taken the precautiOn of arming them
selves with shot-guns. When Cigoli painted
the aged Simeon at the circumcision of the
infant Saviour, which picture is now in St
Petersburg, he remembered that aged men
wore speetacles, and so placed those conven-
fences upon Slmeon's nose. In picture by
Nerrlo, OF Christ healing the sick, the by
ISLANDERS are represented with perwigs.
This ludicrous effect is equalled in Albert
Dnrer's picture of the expulsion of Adam
and Eve from the Garden of Eden by an
angel wearing a flounced petticoat. The
same artist, in his scene of Peter denying
Christ, depicts Roman soldier quietly en-
Joylng pipe Of tobacco OF all the artists
who have sinned against propriety or proba-
bility the Dutch and Flemish have been
among the most eccentric. In the museum
of Vienna there is picture, Christ Bearing
the Cross" by Peter Brueghel the elder,
which shows Christ carrying the burden,
while monk, crucifx in hand, eXhorts the
two thieves to die repentant David Teniers
the younger, in his "Denial of st. Peter" in
the Louvre gallery, represents Peter as a
Flemish guardsman. The soldiers are play
ing cards at a table and the whole scene is
thoroughly Flemish. A Dutch painter in a
picture of the Wise Men worshipping the
Holy Child, has shown one of them wearing
large white surplice and boots and spurs,
and In the act OF presenting to the Child
model OF the Dutch man-of-war Another
Dutch Artist in representing Abraham offer
ing up his son, departs from the Scriptural
account of the patriarch's stretching forth
his hand and taking the knife" and shows
him as about to shoot Isaac with a blunder-
buss Jean Belin, in one of his pictures
represents the Virgin and Child listening to
performer upon the violin, and in another
he has drawn King David playing upon the
harp at the marriage of Christ with st. Cath
arlne. Nicholas Poussin has represented the
Deluge with boats at hand ready for use, and
on another canvas, "Rebecca at the Well"' is
seen with Grecian architecture in the back
ground. And in a picture representing
HOLSTERS in the Sea, listening to the Preach
ing of st. Anthony of Padua," the Holsters
are red, although as yet, it is fair to presume,
unboiled. French artist has depicted the
| Lords Supper, the table being ornameDted
with tumblers filled with cigar-lighters; and
the virgin Mary, IN another work of the
same nationality. is helping herself to cup
OF coffee from chased cOffec-pot. But droll-
est of all blunders is that which portrays the
Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve in all
their ,primeyal simplicity, while near them,
In full costume, is seen hunter with gun
shooting ducks. The time for these absurdi-
ties on canvas has passed away. Nowadays
the painter is severely archaeological, and the
exceptions to the rule Of accuracy in such
matters are infrequent. There were no art
critics to swoop upon the old painters and
expose their historical shortcomings in the
newspapers, but woe to the artist of to-day
who makes a mistake of century or so in
the details of his picture. He will be sure to
see his blunder set forth in print and be
smartly lectured for his ignorance.